Few months back, I, like many others, had written off Saurav Ganguly. I did not see him returning back to the Indian team, except if it happened via some political manipulation.
And today, he is not only back in the team, he is one of the most consistent batsmen in the team at this time. So much for the youth brigade in the team, we have all the old stalwarts back. No Raina, no Venugopal Rao, no R P Singh, not even a Kaif. Saurav, Dravid, Sachin sounds like WC 2003 or even earlier times!
And yet, as all of them seem to be in decent nick now, it gives more confidence and comfort for us fans. At least now, if we are 3 down for something, we do not have to feel that its all over. We see hope even at that stage.
Speaking of which, I do not think we have a mature head amongst the latter batsmen – someone who can hold his end, play out the overs, inspite of wickets falling at the opposite end, and try to make a run for victory at the end. Obviously I mean a player beyond our mainstays of Sachin, Dravid, etc.
Yuvraj – maybe? But I suppose he should be a part of our main batters’ list.
Dhoni and Dinesh Karthick show a lot of promise. Whether they can be depended upon, in crisis, and consistently, is something we have to wait and see.
I am talking of players like Symonds, Shoaib Malik, Jacob Oram or even a Russel Arnold. Lets see if a Dhoni or a Karthik or an Irfan Pathan coming down the order can occupy this slot.
On to the World Cup then..
Random Musings 